


melt my heart with a bright smile

by badasskorra



Series: hey angel [2]
Category: Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, some good ol' mutual pining, wylan and kuwei are art majors because they can
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-11
Updated: 2018-01-11
Packaged: 2019-02-22 17:48:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13172061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badasskorra/pseuds/badasskorra
Summary: Wylan is tired of this never-ending cycle of almost and wishes it would be Today for a little while longer, just enough so he can gather up his courage and finally do; but time doesn't wait for him and another tomorrow still comes.or, kuwei is still a terrible roommate, wylan is maybe sorta in love, and jesper is beautiful





	melt my heart with a bright smile

**Author's Note:**

> happy new year!! may 20gayteen live up to its name n also bring us happiness and peace bc im tired!!!
> 
> anyway thanks to everyone who read the first part and actually liked it, sorry this took so long but 2017 was a whole shitshow tht drained me n my writers block was Awful
> 
> (this was proofread but like i wouldnt put it past my half asleep mind to have missed something sorry)
> 
> title from like that sun by day6

He stares at the keyboard, willing his fingers to move and find the right keys on their own, wishing he could be doing anything but this. He looks up at the empty music sheet and groans internally.

"Wy," Jesper whines from his spot on the floor next to Wylan's bed. "Let's go out, I'm bored out of my mind."

"Take Kuwei with you."

"That was one time and I didn't even invite him, he just showed up out of nowhere!"

Wylan rolls his eyes, not looking away from the music sheets.

After that day in the bakery, Wylan resisted for only a week before one day grabbing his jacket and leaving the dorm, throwing a vague "I'm going out" at his roommate, arriving at the aforementioned bakery twenty minutes later. It was after 7 and the place was relatively deserted, no sight of the tall, dark and handsome stranger Wylan was definitely not looking around for. 

He sighed and approached the counter, thinking of getting some of their heavenly waffles since he was here anyway.

Not even a minute after he sat down, Wylan heard the bell chime and  _oh._  He wasn't too late after all.

They fell into a routine, intentionally or not. Both of them would stop by the small shop every week on Fridays, at first exchanging only nods of acknowledgement, until one day Jesper invited himself to Wylan's table.

 

 

Wylan is not stupid. No matter how many times his father would like to argue the opposite, Wylan is many things - a broke university student, a procrastinator, an idiot, - but he's not stupid. He knows Jesper likes him. 

He sees it in the fond smile on his lips despite him rolling his eyes. He sees it in the way his eyes keep coming back to Wylan when he thinks he isn't looking. He sees it in the way Jesper flirts with him even though he says it's  _just teasing_.

And Wylan- Wylan  _falls_.

He falls in love with way Jesper laughs, that bright and loud laugh when he throws his head back. He falls in love with his determination to fight his gambling addiction - the very reason he ended up in that alleyway all these weeks ago, to stop spending the money for the food his father deprived himself of to save for his education. He falls in love with how peaceful he looks when he falls asleep on the couch while Wylan is practicing on the piano. 

And how can he not? Jesper may be an ass sometimes but he's also kind and so, _so_  beautifulWylan wishes he inherited his mother's talent for art so he could paint him. But then again, a painting wouldn't do the real thing justice. 

Wylan  _knows_ , but still he doubts. So, he does nothing.

There are plenty of opportunities to  _do_ , but he chickens out last minute because no matter how many times he reassures himself of Jesper's feelings a stray thought makes its presence known and gnaws at the back of his mind, stopping him short.

He tells himself the middle ground is fine. They're fine. It's fine.

It's fine, it's fine, it's fine-

(It's not.)

 

The first time something almost happens they are at the waffle house again. Jesper brought him there for consolation after he bombed one of his exams, and Wylan is in the middle of devouring a big double chocolate piece of cake when Jesper reaches across the table. Wylan looks up when his fingers brush over his cheek, a deer caught in headlights.

"You had a little chocolate there," Jesper smiles, a fond barely-there smile that makes Wylan's heart clench in his chest. 

His hand still hasn't moved away and Wylan is still staring at him with wide eyes, fork halfway to his mouth. He thinks he's stopped breathing. 

"Gross, you're in public."

The Devil himself sits down next to them then and the spell is broken. 

(Wylan doesn't speak to Kuwei for a whole of two days before he needs to send him emergency grocery shopping again.)

 

The second time it almost happens Wylan is practicing on the piano with Jesper sitting next to him, humming. It's around midnight and his neighbors are probably trying to fall asleep but he needs just a little more time to perfect this part, just five more minutes and he's done.

He doesn't know how long he _does_ play but suddenly there are hands on his, preventing them from moving.

"Wy, you've been playing for hours. You have to sleep. What good would all this time of hard work do if you are tired and can't keep your eyes open tomorrow?"

He shrugs and halfheartedly tries to free his wrists. "I'll drink coffee."

"Wylan."

He looks up at the ceiling and groans. There's no point in arguing with Jesper when he's set his mind on something.

"Are you seriously pouting right now?" There's a laugh at the edge of his voice. Wylan keeps his eyes to the peeling paint. 

"No," replies Wylan, pouting.

"You're adorable." 

The response dies in his throat when he makes the mistake of looking down just so he can stick his tongue out at him. He can see his smile now and it's blinding. The lamp on the table is basking him in warm light, making him look even more untouchable. Wylan wants to write him a whole book of poems. 

He looks away.

(He doesn't sleep that night.)

 

The same _almost_ keeps repeating itself over and over and over again. Wylan always tells himself, _tomorrow_. Tomorrow comes and goes, and then a new tomorrow arrives, and again it goes, and Wylan is tired of this never-ending cycle of _almost_ and wishes it would be Today for a little while longer, just enough so he can gather up his courage and finally _do_.

Time doesn't wait for him. Another tomorrow still comes.

 

"Isn't this due tomorrow?"

Wylan startles and looks up. "Huh?"

Kuwei, who unlike Wylan is all done with his homework, his finished painting drying on a tripod in his room, and who is now lounging on the couch mocking all poor university students with still so much work to do, rolls his eyes and jerks his head toward the pile of crumpled paper on the table.

Wylan nods and lets out a noise not unlike a dying whale, dropping his head on top of the mess. "Shit." 

Wylan can't see him from his position but he hears the smile in his voice when he replies, the bastard, "You thought you had more time, didn't you? Too distracted by that Adonis of yours?"

"You're the only one distracted by him," Wylan grumbles, not lifting his head, and wills the earth to swallow him whole so his misery can finally end.

He stays like that for another minute or two, before realizing that no matter how appealing death sounds right now, he has an assignment to finish and the sonata won't compose itself. Wylan groans one last time just for the dramatics of it and stands up. 

Then, a knock on the door.

Wylan looks at Kuwei. "Are you expecting someone?"

Kuwei shakes his head. "No. Are you?"

"No?"

The two boys look at each other and then at the door.

Wylan speaks up first. "You get it."

Kuwei puts up a finger before rolling off the couch and onto the floor. "I can't. I've fallen and I can't get up."

"I hate you."

"I'll get over it."

Wylan rolls his eyes before another knock comes at the door, bringing him back to the situation at hand. 

Wylan looks to the door again and then around the room to find something to defend himself in case it is a murderer, but then again why would a murderer  _knock_? The scary lady from downstairs then coming to pulverize him because of all the noise he's been making.

Wylan really wishes either of them cared enough for sports to own a baseball bat right now. He opts for the next best thing - a mop. 

He sighs.

That pile of half-empty music sheets on the table sounds like so much fun right now.

When Wylan opens the door, it's neither a crazed murderer nor the lady from downstairs that he sees but rather Jesper Fahey himself. 

What he does next he blames on his exhaustion and Jesper scaring him half to death, even if it's an entirely conscious decision.

Wylan hits him. 

"What the hell was that for?" Jesper wails, rubbing his forehead. 

"What are you doing here? It's-" He looks up at the clock in the hallway. "3 in the morning. Shouldn't you be asleep?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he says and moves - read: rushes - past Wylan into their apartment. "Too early for cleaning, don't you think?"

Wylan drops the mop and drags himself into the living room where Kuwei is now sitting on the couch eating cereal, Jesper pacing around.

Wylan just wants to sleep.

He plops himself on the couch next to Kuwei's feet. He pointedly looks at Kuwei; Kuwei raises an eyebrow. Wylan is too tired for this. 

He abandons all subtlety and instead says, "Shoo."

Kuwei looks at him, then at Jesper, who's soon going to wear out their carpet with his pacing. Kuwei looks back at him with a sly grin on his face.

"Don't have too much fun."

And he's gone.

Wylan yawns and turns to Jesper. "Jes. Can you come sit down, I'm too tired to even listen to you pace around."

Jesper continues on like he didn't hear him. Wylan groans and stands up. He grabs Jesper's wrist and drags them both to the couch, sitting down again and Jesper with him. He drops Jesper's wrist but the boy is still half-leaning on him from the impact, his hand on his thigh, not moving away. Wylan's brain is too dead to properly process all this.

"Now, tell me what happened."

Leg fidgeting, like he needs to keep moving, Jesper speaks up. "I went gambling." Wylan's eyes widen but before he can so much as open his mouth, Jesper goes on. "Well- Almost. I almost went gambling. I was right there, one foot in, but- But I turned back. I walked away."

"That- That's good. I'm proud of you, Jes."

Jesper smiles, but it's not his usual blinding grin; it's not even the soft smile he saves for Wylan. It's a nervous, tight-lipped thing. Wylan frowns.

"Hey." He lays a hand on his shoulder and squeezes. "You knew this was going to be hard. It's gonna take time. But this is progress! The you from last month wouldn't have thought twice before walking in and losing all his money." Jesper looks up, and Wylan gives him a small, reassuring smile. "But you stopped yourself. And that's what matters."

"Thank you, Wy. I'm really glad you found me in that alleyway, and that you are my friend."

Suddenly Wylan thinks, _this is it_. This is his chance to finally do something about the awkward tension they've been existing in for the past few months.

But having Jesper look at him with that spark in his eyes (if he were brave enough he'd call it  _hope_ ), his hand on his thigh, sitting so,  _so_ painfully close, Wylan feels like he'd suffocate; it's both too much and not enough.

He looks away and clears his throat. 

Fuck it.

He's doing this.

"Yeah, well. I'm glad you're my friend, too. And we'll always be friends, no matter what, but-"

"But?" Jesper prompts, his hand still burning a whole in Wylan's sweatpants where it lays on _his_ _thigh_. Maybe he is freaking out over this. Just a little. (A lot.)

"But," Wylan repeats, more firmly this time, "we could also be something mo-"

"Wylan Van Eck, are you trying to tell me what I think you're trying to tell me?" Jesper cuts him off again, and Wylan can hear the smile in his voice,  _that little shit_.

Wylan groans and turns to look at him, lightly slapping his arm; he can feel the smile that's threatening to take over his features. "If you let me finish talking, you irritating pain in the ass!" 

Jesper is openly laughing now, raising his arms in the air in mock surrender. "Easy there, Shakespeare, I'm already in love with you."

Wylan's brain short circuits. 

_What?_

"What?"

And,  _oh_ , there's that soft smile, though Wylan can't help but feel it's more mocking than fond, now. "Are you really this dense, I'm not exactly subtle."

"I'm gonna hit you again," Wylan threatens but it's empty and he knows Jesper knows.

"I love you, you dumbass," and Wylan's heart is too busy trying to beat its way out of his chest because Jesper's hands are suddenly cradling his face for him feel offended at the albeit good-natured insult.

Wylan leans forwards, their foreheads knocking together. "Yeah?"

"Definitely."

Wylan is tired, and all he wants to do right now is lean his head on Jesper's shoulder and fall asleep, but then Jesper leans the rest of the way in and finally  _kisses_ him and Wylan's never felt more  _alive_.

He's going to sleep later.

 

(Wylan doesn't sleep that night either; but the next day when he walks in class he plays his 'best piece yet', as his teacher tells him, and afterwards Jesper takes him out for waffles and kisses him again, so it isn't much of a loss really.)


End file.
